CHAPTER 351: CHAPTER 350: CLEAR CHOICE

Shi Yang glanced calmly at Dong Wenjie, who was standing aside, and with a voice only the two of them could hear, smiled and said, "Seems like I came at the wrong time, huh?"

Zhao Meimei immediately felt awkward, wanting to explain but fearing unnecessary misunderstandings, so she could only murmur, "Bro."

Behind her, Dong Wenjie came over to greet Shi Yang politely, "Hello, I’m Dong Wenjie."

Dong Wenjie was tall and lean, with thick eyebrows and bright eyes—he looked quite good. Shi Yang sized him up, pursed his lips, then flashed a friendly smile and said, "Hello."

Shi Yang didn’t introduce himself, and Dong Wenjie self-consciously continued the conversation, "You’re Meimei’s brother, right? We spoke last time at the BBQ place."

Shi Yang raised his eyebrows, "Mm, you could call it that."

Dong Wenjie didn’t catch the implication in Shi Yang’s words and naively tried to get closer, "Just call me little Dong—it’s what everyone else calls me."

Shi Yang looked at Zhao Meimei, his eyes questioning: Do you two usually call each other so intimately?

Zhao Meimei wanted to explain but didn’t know how to say it for a moment. She could only look at Shi Yang nervously, anxious.

Shi Yang said to Dong Wenjie, "I came today to invite Meimei’s two roommates for a meal. Do you want to join too?"

Dong Wenjie hesitated visibly, torn between whether he should go and really wanting to join.

Shi Yang made the decision for him, decisively saying, "It’s settled then, come along. The more, the merrier. Right, Meimei?"

Zhao Meimei felt like there was a fire inside her, ready to turn her into human barbecue.

Shi Yang led them to a nearby hotpot restaurant near the school, lively and warmly eating hand-held hotpot.

When they sat down, Zhao Meimei was next to Shi Yang, Peng Hui next to Zhao Meimei, and Dong Wenjie naturally chose a seat beside Shi Yang.

After ordering, Shi Yang asked Dong Wenjie, "Want a drink?"

Dong Wenjie shook his head politely, "No, I have classes in the afternoon."

Shi Yang ordered a bottle of beer for himself, and Zhao Meimei advised, "Bro, don’t drink."

Shi Yang gave her a look, "I didn’t order much, just one bottle."

Zhao Meimei exchanged the beer for hot almond milk, couldn’t help but nag, "You have dinner plans tonight, right? You can’t drink constantly, you’re going to ruin your stomach!"

Shi Yang wore a perfunctory look, "Mm-hmm, alright, I’ll listen to you. No drinking."

During the wait for the dishes, Dong Wenjie noticed a band-aid on Zhao Meimei’s neck and asked with concern, "Meimei, what happened to your neck?"

Everyone instantly focused their attention on Zhao Meimei’s neck. She was taken aback, instinctively glancing at Shi Yang beside her.

Shi Yang looked at her with a playful smile.

Zhao Meimei’s face flushed red, she coughed lightly, and casually explained, "Got bitten by a mosquito."

Peng Hui, being a mischievous friend, seized the moment and teased, "Mm, must have been a handsome big mosquito," she then delighted herself, deliberately winking and signaling at Shi Yang.

"Pfft!" Shi Yang couldn’t help but laugh.

Qian Simeng laughed holding onto her belly, Zhao Meimei couldn’t resist either and laughed, while scolding Peng Hui, "You talk too much!"

Apart from Dong Wenjie, who was oblivious, everyone else burst into fits of laughter.

Zhao Meimei grabbed the fried shrimp chips given by the hotpot restaurant on the table and stuffed them into Peng Hui’s mouth, "Eat something to keep your mouth shut!"

Peng Hui dodged and laughed, shouting, "Brother Yangyang, control your Meimei!"

Shi Yang laughingly pulled Zhao Meimei, "Alright, stop messing around."

Zhao Meimei turned to glare at Shi Yang, couldn’t help but complain, "All because of you!"

Shi Yang naturally put an arm around her shoulders, comforting her, "Mm, this morning was too rushed, I forgot to remind you."

Dong Wenjie watched Shi Yang and Zhao Meimei’s intimate actions, feeling inexplicably unsettled. Even if they were actual siblings, wasn’t this a bit too close?

The hotpot ingredients and dishes arrived, and Shi Yang generously ordered, besides the vegetables and meat everyone chose, three plates of green shrimp. One plate was placed right in front of him, and the other two in the center of the table.

Once the water boiled, Shi Yang carelessly dumped the whole plate of shrimp into the pot. His gesture was so big that everyone noticed, and everyone except Zhao Meimei looked surprised.

After putting in the shrimp, Shi Yang began selecting lamb and vegetables and putting them into Zhao Meimei’s pot. Zhao Meimei poured drinks into cups with the familiarity of someone used to Shi Yang’s behavior.

When the ingredients were done, and the pot was ready for eating, Shi Yang and Zhao Meimei shared the items from the same pot, and once the shrimp were cooked, Shi Yang scooped them out and laid them on a plate to cool.

Once cooled, he began to expertly peel the shrimp, piling the white shrimp meat into a small mound, which was then placed in front of Zhao Meimei.

Apart from the two of them, everyone else was dumbfounded.

Peng Hui and Qian Simeng wore expressions of envy and jealousy.

Dong Wenjie’s brow furrowed deeply, watching the affectionately bonded siblings, that strange feeling grew stronger, the meal was eaten with discomfort, unable to swallow.

After that meal, Shi Yang sent everyone to the school gate and left.

After Shi Yang left, Dong Wenjie stopped Zhao Meimei and said, "Let’s find a place to talk?"

Zhao Meimei refused, "It’s almost class time. If you have something to say, just say it here."

Dong Wenjie’s face looked a bit unsightly, suppressing his turbulent emotions, asked, "Meimei, you told me you had a boyfriend before, is it true?"

Zhao Meimei answered sharply, "Yes, it’s true."

Dong Wenjie opened his mouth but struggled to ask the tangled question within his heart.

Zhao Meimei took the initiative to say, "Didn’t you just meet him? My brother is my boyfriend."

Dong Wenjie’s face changed instantly, "You call him ’brother’?..."

Dong Wenjie suddenly understood; couples using intimate nicknames and calling each other ’brother’ was quite normal, especially since Shi Yang was older than Zhao Meimei.

Indeed, Zhao Meimei then explained, "Our families are neighbors, we grew up together. He’s my boyfriend; we’ve been together for many years."

The conversation between Zhao Meimei and Dong Wenjie that day remained known only to them. Peng Hui and Qian Simeng didn’t intentionally inquire, because after that day, Dong Wenjie never sought out Zhao Meimei again; even if they occasionally passed each other on campus, it was only a slight nod and smile, before walking past.

From appearance to disappearance, Dong Wenjie was like a fleeting speck in Zhao Meimei’s campus life, drying up and vanishing before sparking any color under the sun.

Since that day of treating everyone to hotpot, Shi Yang never returned to Zhao Meimei’s school, because he was certain that from this incident, Zhao Meimei had learned a straightforward truth: there might be genuinely platonic friendships between men and women, but such chances are extremely rare, so outright refusal and avoidance is the most responsible choice for oneself and one’s love.